scholarly journals Academic publishing and open access: Costs, benefits and options for publishing research

Politics ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 40 (1) ◽  
pp. 120-135 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christopher May
Keyword(s):  
Open Access ◽  
International Relations ◽  
Publishing Research ◽  
Academic Community ◽  
Early Career ◽  
Academic Publishing ◽  
Costs And Benefits ◽  
Early Career Researchers ◽  
The United Kingdom ◽  
The Social

This article briefly sets out a political economy of academic publishing, exploring what the costs and benefits of this model are/were for the academic community. It then moves to explore forms of open access publication available to the social science (politics and international relations) community in the United Kingdom and beyond. The article concludes by asking why (given its likely advantages), the open access model is not ubiquitous and suggests that the future of publication lies in the hands of early career researchers.

Fast, Free, and Targeted

2016 ◽  
Vol 35 (4) ◽  
pp. 537-549 ◽  
Author(s):  
Itamar Shatz
Keyword(s):  
Early Career ◽  
Retention Rates ◽  
Online Research ◽  
Large Samples ◽  
Early Career Researchers ◽  
Potential Source ◽  
The Social ◽  
Current Article ◽  
Conducting Research ◽  
Untapped Resource

Recruiting participants is a necessary step in many studies. With the advent of online research techniques, scientists are looking for new places where participants can be recruited online, in order to overcome the limitations of current sources and avoid the issues associated with sample overuse. The social media website “Reddit” is a potential source for recruitment, as it allows for free and rapid data collection from large samples, while enabling researchers to target specific populations when needed. The ability to recruit for free is especially important because it enables students and early career researchers, for whom even low recruitment costs can be prohibitive, to benefit from the opportunity of conducting research that they otherwise would not be able to. The current article therefore aims to bring this prospective, untapped resource to the attention of the research community. The article discusses current online recruitment sources and their limitations, provides an overview of Reddit, validates its use for research purposes, examines participation data from previous studies which recruited through Reddit, highlights its advantages and limitations as a participant pool, and suggests guidelines that can improve recruitment and retention rates for scientists looking to use Reddit for their research.

scholarly journals How is open access publishing going down with early career researchers? An international, multi-disciplinary study

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
David Nicholas ◽  
Hamid R. Jamali ◽  
Eti Herman ◽  
Jie Xu ◽  
Chérifa Boukacem-Zeghmouri ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Open Access ◽  
Career Progression ◽  
Early Career ◽  
Open Access Publishing ◽  
Openness To Change ◽  
Advantages And Disadvantages ◽  
Early Career Researchers ◽  
Scholarly Communications ◽  
The Subject ◽  
The Many

This study explores early career researchers’ (ECRs) appreciation and utilisation of open access (OA) publishing. The evidence reported here results from a questionnaire-based international survey with 1600 participants, which forms the second leg and final year of a four year long, mixed methods, longitudinal study that sought to discover whether ECRs will be the harbingers of change when it comes to scholarly communications. Proceeding from the notion that today’s neophyte researchers, believed to hold millennial values of openness to change, transparency and sharing, may be best placed to power the take-up of OA publishing, the study sought to discover: the extent to which ECRs publish OA papers; the main reasons for their doing or not doing so; and what were thought to be the broader advantages and disadvantages of OA publishing. The survey data is presented against a backdrop of the literature-based evidence on the subject, with the interview stage data providing contextualisation and qualitative depth. The findings show that the majority of ECRs published in OA journals and this varied by discipline and country. Most importantly, there were more advantages and fewer disadvantages to OA publishing, which may be indicative of problems to do with cost and availability, rather than reputational factors. Among the many reasons cited for publishing OA the most important one is societal, although OA is seen as especially benefiting ECRs in career progression. Cost is plainly considered the main downside.

What is ‘impact’? Learning from examples across the professional life course

2018 ◽  
pp. 181-201
Author(s):  
Tina Haux
Keyword(s):  
Social Policy ◽  
Life Course ◽  
Research Impact ◽  
Analytical Framework ◽  
Academic Community ◽  
Early Career ◽  
Professional Life ◽  
The Social ◽  
The Uk ◽  
The Life Course

The inclusion of research impact in the 2014 Research Excellence Framework in the UK (REF2014) was greeted with scepticism by the academic community, not least due to the challenges of defining and measuring the nature and significance of impact. A new analytical framework of the nature of impact is developed in this chapter and it distinguishes between policy creation, direction, discourse and practice. This framework is then applied to the top-ranked impact case studies in the REF2014 from the Social Work and Social Policy sub-panel and the ESRC Early Career Impact Prize Winners in order to assess impact across the life-course of academics.  

OpenCon2014 in Washington DC, November 2014. Early Career Researchers and Open Access Advocacy

2015 ◽  
Vol 32 (2) ◽  
pp. 14-16
Author(s):  
Matt Gallagher
Keyword(s):  
Open Access ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Early Career ◽  
Narrative Approach ◽  
Washington Dc ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Early Career Researchers ◽  
Experience Levels ◽  
The Right ◽  
Academic Resources

Purpose – This paper aims to give an overview of OpenCon 2014, organized by the Right to Research Coalition, SPARC (The Scholarly Publishing and Academic Resources Coalition) and an organizing committee of students and early career researchers from around the world that took place between the 14th and 17th of November 2014 in Washington DC. Design/methodology/approach – A narrative approach was used to describe events. Findings – OpenCon 2014 is an exciting new conference that targets early career librarians and researchers who are involved with and/or interested in aspects of the open-access movement. It is attempting to galvanize the upcoming generation of scholars to demand more of traditional publishing models by bringing together a selective group that spans diverse interests and experience levels. Originality/value – This report outlines the author's takeaways and opinions concerning the events of the conference, as well as identifies some of the themes and issues that were relevant to librarians in research institutions.

scholarly journals Data Collection Challenges and Recommendations for Early Career Researchers

2015 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marylen Rimando ◽  
Andrea Brace ◽  
Apophia Namageyo-Funa ◽  
Tiffany Parr ◽  
Diadrey-Anne Sealy ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Data Collection ◽  
Doctoral Students ◽  
Social Research ◽  
Research Process ◽  
Lessons Learned ◽  
Early Career ◽  
Early Career Researchers ◽  
Research Mentoring ◽  
Data Collection Process ◽  
The Social

Data collection is critical to the social research process. When implemented correctly, data collection enhances the quality of a social research study. However, doctoral students and early career researchers may encounter challenges with data collection. This article reports on the data collection challenges in dissertation research encountered by doctoral students enrolled in a public health program at a southeastern United States urban university. Each doctoral student shared at least one challenge and how it affected the data collection process. Additionally, the doctoral students shared how the identified challenges were addressed or suggested recommendations. Understanding these experiences of doctoral students is helpful for doctoral students and early career researchers conducting social research. The lessons learned may guide faculty in research mentoring and structuring research seminars for doctoral students.

scholarly journals Inspiring and ethical mentorship in STEM: A meeting highlighting need for engagement, incentives, and accountability

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Juan Pablo Ruiz ◽  
Pinar Gurel ◽  
William H Olds ◽  
Adriana Bankston ◽  
Gary S McDowell
Keyword(s):  
Academic Research ◽  
Academic Community ◽  
Early Career ◽  
Underrepresented Minorities ◽  
Attrition Rates ◽  
Early Career Researchers ◽  
Mentoring Practices ◽  
Academic Mentoring ◽  
College Park ◽  
Worrying Trend

Academic research institutes have a responsibility to train the next generation of scientists in safe, inclusive environments. However, recent data has shown an increasingly worrying trend of early career researchers (ECRs), particularly underrepresented minorities (URMs), struggling to gain academic independence in STEM fields. While hypercompetition, lack of research funds, and scarce independent research opportunities are systemic sources of this problem, research shows that inadequate mentoring and toxic cultures are major contributors to attrition rates. To address the state of mentoring in STEM, and to discuss further actions to take to improve STEM mentoring, early-career researchers organized a meeting at UMD-College Park on academic mentoring. The talks and workshops, which included students, postdocs, and experts in both STEM and mentoring fields, focused on culturally aware mentoring, hypercompetition, mental health, ethical behavior, and advocacy. Here, we provide an overview of the mentoring landscape experienced by ECRs and describe available resources and further actions for the academic community to join with to improve mentoring practices.

scholarly journals Early Career Researchers’ Experiences of Post-Maternity and Parental Leave Provision in UK Politics and International Studies Departments: A Heads of Department and Early Career Researcher Survey

2020 ◽  
pp. 147892992091036
Author(s):  
Sadiya Akram ◽  
Zoe Pflaeger Young
Keyword(s):  
Parental Leave ◽  
Job Insecurity ◽  
Early Career ◽  
International Studies ◽  
Career Trajectory ◽  
Early Career Researchers ◽  
The United Kingdom ◽  
Early Career Researcher ◽  
The University ◽  
The Impact

Supporting increasing equality and diversity in the recruitment and retention of Early Career Researchers from the widest pool of talent available is high on the agenda of universities and policy makers. Notwithstanding this, the demanding nature of academic careers has a disproportionate effect on Early Career Researchers, who may face indirect obstacles in their career development particularly following a period of maternity or parental leave. Our research seeks to expose the nexus of challenges, from job insecurity to the pressures of raising new families that Early Career Researchers face during this critical juncture in their career trajectory. Focusing on Politics and International Studies Departments in the United Kingdom, we document the institutional mechanisms that exist to support Early Career Researchers returning from maternity and parental leave through a Heads of Department and an Early Career Researcher survey to gain an understanding of needs and the impact of institutional measures. Adopting a feminist institutionalist analysis, we map gendered outcomes in the university, through formal and informal rules, which mitigate against those Early Career Researchers taking maternity and parental leave. We end by identifying specific measures which would help to ensure that the university is more supportive of Early Career Researchers taking maternity and parental leave.

Academic opinions of Wikipedia and Open Access publishing

2014 ◽  
Vol 38 (3) ◽  
pp. 332-347 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lu Xiao ◽  
Nicole Askin
Keyword(s):  
Open Access ◽  
Statistical Power ◽  
Academic Community ◽  
Open Access Publishing ◽  
Academic Publishing ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Academic Knowledge ◽  
Advantages And Disadvantages ◽  
Open Access Journals ◽  
Academic Researchers

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine academics’ awareness of and attitudes towards Wikipedia and Open Access journals for academic publishing to better understand the perceived benefits and challenges of these models. Design/methodology/approach – Bases for analysis include comparison of the models, enumeration of their advantages and disadvantages, and investigation of Wikipedia's web structure in terms of potential for academic publishing. A web survey was administered via department-based invitations and listservs. Findings – The survey results show that: Wikipedia has perceived advantages and challenges in comparison to the Open Access model; the academic researchers’ increased familiarity is associated with increased comfort with these models; and the academic researchers’ attitudes towards these models are associated with their familiarity, academic environment, and professional status. Research limitations/implications – The major limitation of the study is sample size. The result of a power analysis with GPower shows that authors could only detect big effects in this study at statistical power 0.95. The authors call for larger sample studies that look further into this topic. Originality/value – This study contributes to the increasing interest in adjusting methods of creating and disseminating academic knowledge by providing empirical evidence of the academics’ experiences and attitudes towards the Open Access and Wikipedia publishing models. This paper provides a resource for researchers interested in scholarly communication and academic publishing, for research librarians, and for the academic community in general.

scholarly journals I won’t be #BulliedIntoBadScience

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Corina Logan
Keyword(s):  
Best Practices ◽  
Academic Community ◽  
Early Career ◽  
Individual Level ◽  
The Public ◽  
Early Career Researchers ◽  
Research Administrators ◽  
Central Resource ◽  
Peer Community ◽  
The Individual

Watch the VIDEO.The #BulliedIntoBadScience (BIBS) campaign consists of early career researchers leading individuals and institutions in adopting open practices to improve research rigor (from all fields, not only the sciences). I will share how BIBS started and discuss what we as researchers are doing to stop exploiting ourselves and the public when sharing our research with each other and the public. We are developing best practices for facilitating higher quality research and tackling biases in this rapidly changing world of scholarly publishing. I will share case studies at the individual level (e.g., how a PI can run an open and transparent lab), at the level of the academic community (e.g., changing editorial practices via efforts such as Editors4BetterResearch and Peer Community in Ecology), and at the level of institutions (e.g., serving as Data Champions and advising governments). We at BIBS aim to be a central resource for people to share and organize best practices, thus it is useful for researchers, librarians and research administrators.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document